Government challenged on how skills shortage impacts housing

The government has admitted that it does not assess the impact of skills shortages on housing construction.

Bill Esterson, the Labour MP for Sefton Central, recently tabled a written parliamentary question to business secretary Kemi Badenoch asking “what recent assessment she has made of the effect of skills shortages in small and medium construction businesses on housing construction”.

In response, minister Nusrat Ghani said the Department for Business and Trade “does not produce assessments of skills shortages in small and medium construction businesses, and the impact of these on housing construction”.

Ghani pointed out that the Construction Skills Network produces annual forecasts of demand for construction skills, and had predicted a need for 225,000 additional construction workers between 2023 and 2027.

In a separate question, Esterton also asked the education secretary “what plans she has to address skills shortages in the construction industry”.

The skills minister Robert Halfon answered that the government was “building a skills system that is employer-focused, high-quality and fit for the future”, backed by £3.8bn of investment in this parliament.

He highlighted the “high-quality apprenticeship standards” available to construction employers, with 81 standards approved for delivery, including in modern methods of construction.

In 2021/22, there were 7,490 starts for Level 3 (advanced) apprenticeships in the construction, planning and built environment sector, a 29.7 per cent increase on 2020/21 when numbers were impacted by Covid.

He added that there were three T-level qualifications in construction currently available, as well as 18 approved Higher Technical Qualifications in construction and the built environment from September 2023.

Among the other initiatives Halfon pointed to were the 418 ‘Free Courses for Jobs’ offers available in construction, allowing eligible adults to access Level 3 qualifications (equivalent to A levels) for free.

Graham Harle, chief executive of consultants Gleeds Worldwide, recently wrote for Construction News that housing was being “heavily affected” by labour shortages.

He argued that “before long it will be labour, or the lack thereof, that is the greatest barrier to achieving the UK’s ambitious homebuilding, net-zero and infrastructure delivery targets”.

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